A family weekend at The Firs: a Suffolk countryside retreat built for all ages

The Firs is a Suffolk countryside retreat where a family weekend actually feels like a break for the grown-ups too. Set across four acres of gardens, it's the kind of stay where children can roam and parents can finally exhale — and at 2 hours from London and 45 minutes from Norwich, it's an easy escape from city life.

The magic for families is the space. Children can splash about and run themselves happily tired across the grounds, while there's always a quiet corner of garden for a parent with a coffee. Garden games on the lawn fill the afternoons, the firepit and pizza oven turn dinner into an event, and once the little ones are asleep, the private wood-fired hot tub is the parents' reward.

Our family lodges — The Stables and The Bushel — both sleep four, with proper beds for the children rather than a sofa-bed compromise. Each has a wood-burning stove for cosy evenings and its own hot tub outside.

Days out are easy too. The Suffolk coast is close: under half an hour to sandy beaches, crabbing villages and rock pools, with the cathedral city of Norwich just 45 minutes the other way for a rainy-day adventure. But plenty of families never leave the gardens at all — and that's rather the point of a countryside stay like this.

For one of those UK stays that genuinely works for every age, The Firs is hard to beat.

Planning a family escape? Check availability and book direct.